Here’s a thought…
“The true civilization is where every man gives to every other every right that he claims for himself.”
ROBERT GREEN INGERSOLL
Orcas High ranks in top 12 Washington state high schools
Orcas Island School District Board President Janet Brownell reported the following news:US News and World Report just released it's top high schools in the US. One hundred schools (out of 21,000) received a "Gold" medal. Orcas High received a SILVER MEDAL. To read more about it, go to https://www.usnews.com/sections/education/high-schools/ In
Moving on and serving the public
My sister is a nurse and her occupation is in great demand these days. She has worked in a variety of positions in her nursing career, from pediatric wards to internal medicine, wound care, cardiac clinics, urgent care, to complex case management. In every position, her work ethic of expertise
Final county budget vote this Tuesday: cash balance projected to fall short of $1.5 million mark
The San Juan County Council will vote on the revised county budget on Tuesday, Dec. 9. Last week, they heard from various citizen and county groups who were facing budget cuts. The council voted to re-instate the following budget items: $48,900 to restore a juvenile probation officer position $25,000 to
Eastsound committee and cemetery board complete projects
This week the Eastsound Planning Review Committee (EPRC) and the Cemetery District met and reported on the completion of several tasks they'd set out for themselves.The EPRC is a county advisory committee that is becoming more prominent in county planning, and the Cemetery District (for Woodlawn Cemetery) is a county
Remembering everyday heroes
Just about a year ago, my Orcas Island hero, Pat Pomeroy, died.Pat was the broker-owner of Coldwell Banker Orcas Island and many island realtors learned the trade at her offices. She was also the wife of Wes Pomeroy, former teacher, and the mother, grandmother and friend to so many of
Currency and circulation
Sounds business-like, doesn't it? Much more important than kibbitzing with and borrowing from the neighbors.But business and commerce on Orcas Island has that personal touch that gives accountability, value and service to all our transactions. This weekend, beginning today, is looming up to be a festival, a flurry, of circulating
Money found for Orcas Rec, Seniors and Farmers
"You can't always get what you want, but if you try, you get what you need." This week, the County Council proposed restoring $10,000 to the Orcas Rec program, and $5,000 to the Lopez Youth programs. This is great news, considering all funding to these groups was planned to be
Look out your window
We learn so much from our friends. Earlier this year, fellow Orcas A Cappella member Mireille Paulson created a honey-toned Byzantine-style icon, "Virgin of the Sweet Kiss," under the tutelage of fellow Lopezian Colin Goode. I was so comforted and astonished by the beauty of it that I asked her
Christmas Trees benefit kids' sports and 4-H
Christmas Trees (priced from $25-$95) are now available at Ace Hardware. They are being sold by kids from the school, and all sales proceeds benefit the school sports programs (other than football) and the 4-H Trailblazers. Sales are happening now until all the trees are sold. For further information, contact
Long live print journalism too!
Forty years ago, I delivered our weekly neighborhood newspaper. I wanted to be a journalist, but my mom discouraged me, saying it was a rat race. When I looked into graduate school journalism, my state university only offered courses in television journalism. When I lived in NY City, and worked
Bullwings updates at noon
Hi there!It's a foggy cold morning on Orcas Island and I'm multi-tasking layered with reflective thoughts of peace and hope. Isn't that what this season is all about?Today Mindy Kayl, candidate for Orcas West County Council position, is observing a hand-recount of last month's ballots. She lost by about 100
Sing out!
We're having fun now! Friday night was the Orcas A Cappella concert on Lopez Island, and last night we performed on Orcas -- to sold-out houses both nights.From the African welcome song to the Pilgrim's Chorus finale we sang and played songs of harvest and home, of spinning wheels and
Not a traditional Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving Day was a sharp, damp denouement from ten days of shock after being terminated from the Sounder.Beginning on Monday, my daughter, who recently moved to Seattle after being laid off from her job in Portland, was suffering from a severe case of nausea and vomiting. Appendicitis and hepatitis loomed
Thanksgiving poems
When Father Carves the DuckWe all look on with anxious eyes when father carves the duck and mother almost always sighs when father carves the duckThen all of us prepare to rise and hold our bibs before our eyes and be prepared for some surprise when father carves the duck.He
Letters to the Editor welcomed
From the New York Times, Nov. 25, 2008 a letter by Peter Brown: “Church Forgives John Lennon ‘Boast’ ” (news article, Nov. 23), on the Vatican’s “forgiveness” of John Lennon’s 1966 remark that the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus,” missed an important point. Apparently so did the Vatican. John’s
Birth of Bullwings
I'm going to make this large text because computers are hard on the eyes anyway, and my first love will always be print, from noble newspaper to soggy fishwrapper. Why Bullwings? From my horoscope (I'm on the cusp of Taurus and Gemini) which last week, that fateful week of Armistice
